The Return of Koboi
by MidnightShadow101
Summary: Opal Koboi has a sister? Give me a break! The People have discovered another child genius, and try to keep a close eye on her. Narcissa Machiavelli is two steps ahead. When she turns the fairy's own devises against them, she finds out about the People and manages to kidnap Holly Short. But this crisis has come too soon, and at the wrong time. Rated T, cause I'm paranoid.
1. Chapter 1

**MidnightShadow: Okay! This is my first Artemis Fowl fanfiction, so please tell me how it is! I've never read any, so I don't know how they go. I hope you all like it, and please review!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Artemis Fowl. *Breathes a sigh* Wow, that's depressing.**

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Chapter I

**Artemis's POV**

"I do not know why you are so worried, Butler. It's perfectly legal business in broad daylight, for heaven's sake."

Butler glanced back at me through the rear-view mirror. "That's exactly what you said before the Jon Spiro event. And look how that turned out."

I winced, the thought of Jon Spiro pointing a gun shakily at me filling my thoughts momentarily. But the moment passed.

"This is different. I am not the one selling the technology." And it was true. I had received an e-mail from a mysterious caller. It said:

Dear Artemis Fowl,

I have heard from one of my many informants that you take an interest in surveillance technology. If that is the case, then I believe that I have something to show you. Please meet me at the Italian restaurant, Buon Cibo, in Dublin, for negotiation on Thursday. I will be waiting for you at 1:00 PM, at table four.

They left no name, which was probably why Butler was so tense. "This could be a trap." He had warned, but I had ignored this, curious at the offer. I wondered what kind of technology my offerer had, so I had replied very simply.

I will be there.

So, here we were, driving to almost the center of Dublin to reach to restaurant. It was a sunny day, and tourists were milling around, checking out some of Dublin's popular attractions.

"Here we are." Said Butler grimly, as though we were arriving at my gravesite. I stepped out of the car, straightening the creases in my designer jacket. The restaurant was quite nice, even by my standards, and it was fairly busy. We stepped inside. Immediately, a waiter stepped up and smiled at us.

"_Ciao, signori! Come posso aiutarla oggi? _How may I help you today?"

I gave a dismissive wave. "We have a reservation, at table four."

_"Tavolo quattro? Questa parte, signori. _This way, gentlemen."

The waitress led us towards the table marked with a number four. It seemed something of a cruel joke. I remember when I used to hate the number four, because it sounded like the Chinese word for death.

I was surprised when I got to the table. Sitting there was a slight girl, about thirteen years old, wearing a tan skirt and white leather flats. Underneath her unusually bulky designer jacket, which matched her skirt, was a neat white blouse. Around her wrist was a silver bracelet, and she was wearing a signet ring on her ring finger, which was embossed with a fancy _M. _I looked up at her face and suppressed a gasp. The girl was quite beautiful, with dark brown hair twisted into a knot at the back of her head, a snow-pale glowing complexion, soft pink lips, and high cheekbones. She had wide, intelligent-looking gray eyes, but they glittered with a suggested danger. She was reading a book, not even looking up at some of the admiring looks of the locals. She looked Italian.

The waitress waved a hand at the table, then left to take care of some other customers.

Butler cleared his throat.

The girl looked up, and then flashed us a perfect, worthy-of-a-toothpaste-ad smile. "_Tráthnóna maith (Good afternoon)_." She said in Irish, her accent impeccable.

"_Buon pomeriggio (Good afternoon)." _ I replied in fluent Italian. The girl clapped her hands in delight, setting her book down.

"What a pleasure to meet you at last." She said, switching to perfect English. She held out a hand. "My name is Narcissa Machiavelli. And I presume that you are Artemis Fowl?"

I took her hand, shaking it. I noted her fingers, slender and tapered, but nimble as well. "Your presumption proves correct. And your name, Machiavelli, it sounds familiar. Care to enlighten me?"

"I shall." Narcissa allowed herself a small self-satisfied smile. "Machiavelli is a famous name. It first became so by the work of Niccolo Machiavelli, author of _The Prince._ Recognize it now?"

I did. Machiavelli was a famous figure in history, and I mentally berated myself for not recognizing it at first.

"And you are a direct descendent?"

"Correct."

"Interesting."

"Indeed. Now, if you don't mind, let's get back to business." She gestured to the seat across from her. "Sit."

As I did, I could not suppress my surprise at such a young girl conducting business like she did it everyday. "But you are no more than a child."

Apparently she was ready for that one. "Well, you are no more than a teenager."

I smiled. "Point well taken." I waved a hand behind me, at Butler. "This is Butler, my, ah, butler."

"I have heard of him. I know about the Butler family. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Said Butler, but not in a friendly tone.

Narcissa pulled a leather briefcase from underneath the table. "Observe."

She punched in a number on the keypad quickly but casually. Too quick for me to get the password. She then lifted the top and turned it around for me to see. But I was looking at something else. Her book. I recognized it as a romance novel I had written. Under the pseudonym of Violet Tsiburu. Narcissa glanced at the book.

"Oh, you recognize it? Have you read them?"

"A few." I smirked.

"Yes, she's a great author." Suddenly a sly smile curled her lip. "Or should I say, _he _is a great author."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, do not play dumb with me, Master Fowl. I know you wrote this book."

"Let's say I did. How did you know?"

"I compared the writing style of a speech you wrote for a college last year to this book. Very similar. Of course, it was also due to the fact that _Violet Tsiburu _was not in any files that I cared to search in the Interpol."

"Very clever. And coming from me, that's impressive."

"Thank you. Now if you could kindly observe the case."

I ran an expert eye over the objects in the case. There were a few items. Two tiny viles that seemed to contain a clear liquid, along with a tiny microchip. Another looked to be two contact lenses, floating in a similar liquid as the chips. Another was a small syringe, and the last item seemed to be a pad with a USB cord winding from its side.

"What am I supposed to be observing?"

Narcissa smiled again. She pulled out the pad. "This is an omni-pad. A pad made up of tiny omni-sensors. If you would put an electronic devise on it, then it would give you a clear view of any files on the electronic devise. It also allows you to put your own files on it, or sync it with your own computer. Unless the devise is coded."

"And what is it used for, if we could just access the files on our own, or hack the devise?"

"Patience, patience. I'll show you." She produced the vile with the contact lenses. "I call these contact-cams. Short for 'contact-cameras'. You place it in your eye, and you can film anything. Undetectable. No x-ray or scanner can detect these."

I concealed my surprise. This girl had recreated Foaly's iris cam. Amazing. "Any special vision?"

"Naturally. Magnification, night vision, x-ray vision, thermal, and motion sensor."

"How much magnification?"

"Times five normal vision."

Better than Foaly's. Narcissa had even managed to cram motion sensor and night vision into that tiny contact. "Which is why you need the omni-pad. It will access the files on the contact-cam."

"Exactly. But not_ just _the contact-cam."

I was now truly interested. If this thirteen-year old girl had managed to produce technology better than the People's, than what other things had she invented? "Go on."

She pulled out the two tiny viles with the microchips. "These are chips that can be injected into your ear and throat. The throat chip will act as a mike. It takes the vibrations and translates them into speech. The ear chip will act as an earpiece. Not visible, high quality sound, undetectable, and reusable."

"Reusable? How can it be reusable if it's undetectable? How can you locate it again for reusing?"

"Very intuitive, Master Fowl. I'm impressed. On command, the chip will send out an electric pulse that can be tracked using your computer. You slide the needle in and then activate a magnetic pulse using your computer, and the chip sticks to the needle."

I was by now amazed. The People usually couldn't risk earpieces because they were two visible, and therefore, highly detectable. But Narcissa had managed to create this new one-of-a-kind chip, which will act as a perfect, invisible earpiece.

I hid my true feelings by casually checking my nails. "Please forgive me for being a tad skeptical. But I feel a demonstration is in order."

"It was expected that you would ask for one." Narcissa nodded. Then she carefully injected the two chips into her wrist, above her silver bracelet. "I assume you have an x-ray scanner on your mobile phone?"

"Of course." I pulled it from my left breast pocket.

"Check to see if it shows up on your monitor."

I ran it over her wrist. Her bracelet showed up, black and lined with white, but the chips were not visible. "Impressive."

"Thank you." She looked pleased and self-satisfied. Then she pulled out a small sliver laptop and turned it around to show me. Narcissa clicked in a command, and a small red dot appeared on an x-ray picture of her arm. She inserted the needle back in, and keyed in another order to her computer. Then she carefully pulled out the syringe. I saw the two microchips on the tip. "All of my technology also contains an eternity code, which, as you must know, will prevent thieves from learning the secrets of my technology."

I gave a small clap. "Miss Machiavelli, I take my hat off to you. But I have one question. If you know the value of your inventions, why not sell it to the government?"

Anger flashed through Narcissa's beautiful silver eyes. "Master Fowl. Artemis. We both know what the world is like. Children are constantly underestimated, consistently undermined. I had originally contacted the government two years ago, and they laughed at me. 'Look,' they said 'an eleven-year old girl is trying to put one over us. What a fool.' Since then, I knew that people would never accept me for who I was. I patented other smaller designs under pseudonyms. They made me rich. People adored my inventions, admired them. But would they still if they knew a child designed it? No. I am going to start my own technology company, and if you agree to my bargain, it will give it a kick-start. You know what we are. Putting in frankly, we are the most intelligent people in history since Mozart. _You _know what we are capable of. I am selling it to you because you understand."

And I did. I understood the loneliness of being a child genius, the exasperation expressed at others when I was underestimated. But I wasn't lonely anymore. I had friends and supportive parents. "Narcissa, if it's not too much a personal question, then may I ask, where is your family?"

Surprise, then melancholy leached the angry fire out of her eyes. "It's okay. It's not too much of a personal matter. Nobody has ever asked that." She looked down at her feet. "My younger brother was kidnapped and held for ransom. My father gathered it and went to Taiwan to pay it. But the kidnapper tricked him. He pushed them off Taipei 101 and filmed the whole thing. Then they emailed it to me and had me watch their deaths."

A cold feeling of dread filled me. "What about your mother?"

"She slowly spiraled into madness. The doctor says there is nothing for it but bed rest. That was four years ago. My mother refuses to leave her room, and most of the time she doesn't even recognize me."

A felt a pang of sadness and sympathy. On an impulse I placed my hand over her's. She looked up, surprised.

"I'm sorry." I said, and I meant it. "I know what it feels like. I lost my own father to the Russian Mafiya. But I rescued him. He is okay now. My own mother had the same condition as yours. But when my father returned, she was cured."

Narcissa nodded. "My father's will stated that I was the heir to everything, and that he knew I was smart enough to run the Machiavelli Empire by myself." She shrugged. "I apologize for babbling. Once I start talking, I never stop."

"One more question." I leaned forward slightly. "What was the name of their murderer?"

Another wave a cold anger in her eyes. "Billy Kong. I had wanted to hunt him down, but he got away. He is in jail now."

I gave myself a shake and pulled my hand off her's and onto my lap. Back to business. "Back to your inventions. What is your price?"

Relieved at the sudden change of subjects, Narcissa straightened, a professional once more. "Half a metric ton of gold a piece, plus one favor."

"A favor?"

A devilish smile slowly spread across her face. "The Italian government. I would want to prove it to them that we are more than just children. I would like your help to break into the government building, and steal some of their files. I would return them later, with a little note. I could do it myself, of course, but I want them to be defeated by more than one child genius. They scoffed at me, and I want them to pay the price."

I looked into Narcissa's pretty face. So, she was less innocent as she looked. Her face was determined, and I saw myself in it. When revenge and achievements were everything to me, and family was secondary.

'But she had no family.' I reminded myself. 'Achievement is the only way forward for her.'

I thought for a moment. "Do you mind if I think this over? I need to consult some contacts."

She nodded and started to pack her things up. "Go ahead."

I got up and smoothed out the wrinkles in my shirt. "I'll keep in touch."

Narcissa smiled as she got up as well. "I'm glad that you didn't try any tricks, Master Fowl. I had hoped that you wouldn't play dirty, and you have fulfilled my expectations. If you had, than the outcome would be quite unpleasant." She reached under the table and unscrewed a small silver half-sphere from the underside. I caught my breath. I recognized the object cupped in her slim hands. A concussive grenade. Most likely voice activated. Butler tightened the grip on the Sig Sauer is his hip holster.

Narcissa gave us another pearly white smile and traced the edge of the grenade with a slender finger. "I apologize for this, but you can never be too careful you're selling state-of-the-art technology." She said sweetly. She then pocketed the grenade, and walked out with her briefcase in one pale hand.

I was wrong. Narcissa Machiavelli was _a lot _less innocent than she looked. At least her name suited her.

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**MidnightShadow: What do you think? Please tell me in a review!**


	2. Genii the World's Full of Them

**MidnightShadow: I'M BAAAAAACK! Hey, thanks to my reviewer, and thank you for the compliment. I love people who review my stories! Anyway, please ask me questions to put in my bio. Opinions on pairings and whatnot. **

**Disclaimer: Oh, yeah. I totally own Artemis Fowl. Because Artemis Fowl is owned by an almost-teenager girl. SURE. **

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Chapter II

** Narcissa's POV**

I was extremely pleased with myself. Not only had I succeeded in impressing the great Artemis Fowl, I had also proven a couple of my theories correct. As usual.

He had not recognized my name, which meant that all the strenuous hacking I did to erase my name from various police and government files had been very successful. And I noticed that he did not observe anything strange about my bracelet or ring, even when he ran his x-ray scanner on it.

They weren't just fancy pieces of jewelry. My bracelet was lead-lined. Inside was a small mechanism that would shoot out an electric-conductive cable and wrap itself around the nearest heat-radiating object. Heat sensor on the tip. I would then leisurely choose an option on the bracelet: knockout electrocution or a squeeze ability that would crack the ribs of a normal person.

Flicking up the insignia could open my signet ring. Inside was a lead-lined container, containing a very potent sleep poison that would dissolve instantly in drinks. Undetectable. Oldest trick in the book, and been in the family for centuries.

I had figured that Artemis Fowl, child genius, chess prodigy, might possibly have some high technology that would see through the lead, but apparently he had not developed anything yet.

If Artemis continued with my bargain, the company I was starting, Exia, would begin its impact on the world. I had on purposely stayed low for a year, erasing files on myself, to stay unknown until my big reveal. The world would remember the name Narcissa Machiavelli.

I walked to the corner, where a black rented BMW was waiting with its heavily tinted windows. I calmly let myself in. "To the Machiavelli Manor, please."

"Yes, ma'am."

The car started. It drove slowly at first, and then sped up as it drove onto the freeway. My lip curled into a smirk. This would be child's play. Taking candy from a baby.

**Artemis's POV**

I could feel electricity sparking along the base of my skull. This girl, Narcissa, had very effectively conveyed the message that the concussive grenade had planted; _I am not to be trifled with. I am just as dangerous as you. _

The most ingenious part of Narcissa's plan is that she didn't _look _dangerous. She looked more like an angel, with her perfect smile, innocent expression, and beautiful face. In fact, if you didn't know her, you probably would've thought that she was harmless, but even after just one meeting with Narcissa Machiavelli, I knew she was far from that.

She was determined, intelligent, and not one to forget an insult. She was determined to stick it to the Italian government as revenge to their mocking scoffs.

I pensively twisted the fairy communicator ring on my finger, disguised as a ring. I needed to talk to Holly. Maybe she and Foaly could find some files on this girl. I currently felt as if I was walking blindfolded into a minefield. A minefield with a tank and a battalion of highly trained soldiers with high-caliber rifles. I needed information. And fast.

I flipped the ring open and waited for Holly to pick up. She soon did, and her voice crackled to life in my ear.

"Hey, Arty. How are you?" Asked her jovial voice.

"Good. You?"

"Great. What's going on?"

"I have to speak to Foaly."

"Why?"

"I need some information about a girl."

I heard her give a teasing whistle. "Stop the press. Artemis Fowl is taking interest in a girl for once."

"This is not funny, Holly. And, no, I am not _taking interest in a girl. _I… it's complicated. Can you arrange for a shuttle to be at Tara in half an hour?"

**Exactly thirty-four minutes later…**

I was sitting in a seat in a shuttle at E1, Tara. Holly was piloting it into the tunnels. The shuttle, I noticed, had been specifically modified to fit Butler, as he could stand up without bumping his head.

Holly flipped on autopilot and swiveled her chair around to face me. "So, what's going on? Don't tell me, we have to save the world again."

I gave her a distracted smile. "No, I don't think so."

She closed her hazel/blue eyes and put a small hand over her heart. "Thank the gods. I was actually worried for a second."

"I was contacted by mysterious email requesting me to arrive at a meeting today. The email was spiked, and I naturally did not have Foaly's technology to trace it."

Holly smirked. "Don't tell him that. He'll gloat for weeks."

"When I arrived, I found that my contactor was a girl, thirteen years old."

Holly gave a loud groan and rested her head in her hands. "First you, then Minerva, then this girl. How many child geniuses can this world hold?"

"Genii." I corrected automatically. "And yes, the girl turned out to be a child genius. But she troubles me. Her intellect might have actually surpassed my own."

Holly jerked her head from her hands, and then rapped my skull with her knuckles. "Hello? Artemis Fowl the Second in there? Orion? Is that you?"

Butler snorted.

I was less amused. "Holly, please. This is serious."

She nodded and flicked off autopilot and opened the throttle a bit more than the suggested setting. "If Artemis Fowl is actually admitting that someone might be smarter than him, then things _are _serious."

**Ten minutes later…**

Foaly turned around in his chair. "Hey, Arty. May the fours be with you."

"Would you cut that out?" Holly snapped.

Foaly raised his bushy eyebrows. "Well, someone didn't have their sim-coffee today."

"We have a situation here. Look up the name 'Narcissa Machiavelli'."

"Why? Does Artemis have a crush on her?"

"Shut up." Holly and I said in unison.

Foaly scowled. "Okay, okay." He swiveled his chair around to the computers and typed rapidly. "Can someone explain this apparently very tense and serious situation?"

Holly updated Foaly on the situation as he searched the name.

Foaly gave an angry whinny. "No Mud Girl could have surpassed my technology. And I mean that."

I pressed my fingers to my temples. "Please, Foaly. This is no time for professional envy. Have you found anything?"

Foaly's brow was creased in concentration. "No. That's strange. If this girl is so famous, than why isn't she showing up?"

Just as I was about to answer, the door banged open and Mulch came in.

"What are you doing in Police Plaza?" Foaly whinnied again in surprise.

"Cool it, donkey boy. I just came to say hello." He then caught sight of me and groaned. "Great, what has Artemis got us into now?"

I put on my most injured face. "Mulch, you know that sixty percent of the time the trouble that befalls the People is not entirely my fault."

"Sixty percent? You're being generous, Mud Boy. Now what's going on?"

Foaly didn't look up from his keyboard. "We have a situation. Another child genius has sprouted up. And Artemis claims that her technology has surpassed the People's."

Mulch laughed so hard his gray emotion-sensitive beard hair curled into clock spring spirals. "Are you crazy, Arty? A little boy could not pass the People's technology. Some have gotten close to our recently outdated tech, but none has ever passes it."

"It's a she." Butler corrected wearily. "Anything, Mr. Foaly?"

"Nothing. Unless I have a point of reference, than this could take a while."

Mulch stroked his beard. "If I know Butler, he'll have a buttonhole camera on him somewhere and he'll have taken a few pictures of this alleged Mud Girl. Can't we just get the picture and match it up on Foaly's monitors?"

Wow. Stop the press. Mulch Diggums was actually using his brain instead of his stomach for once.

Holly looked at Mulch. "Because, genius, unlike you, this girl is smart."

Mulch pretended to look injured. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Artemis had already checked the pictures. All of them are blanked out. If I had to guess, this girl had a solinium pulser on, which wiped it out."

Mulch glanced at me. "Is anyone wondering why this girl-"

"Her name is Narcissa." Said Foaly from the keyboard.

"Whatever. Is anyone else wondering why Narcissa contacted Artemis? I mean, it's not like it's a big secret that Artemis ain't Prince Charming."

I scowled. Sometimes I forgot how annoying Mulch Diggums was. Not for long. "She said that it was because I understood how tiresome it is being a child genius."

"Yeah, that's what _she _said. How can we trust her?"

Suddenly, a plan came to me in a flash of neurons. I pulled out my mobile phone and turned to my bodyguard. "Butler, do you know Minerva's phone number?"

The giant manservant immediately understood and nodded. "Yes, I do. I memorized the time you spent in Limbo."

"Good. Can you give it to me?"

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	3. Topaz Koboi and Minerva Paradizo

**MidnightShadow: I'm back, people! Hey, thanks to my reviewers, shaadiaThePrincessOfWeird and I'm awesome and y'all know it. I LOVE your usernames! Funny with a capital F! Anyway, thanks for the support. Really encouraging, and I love reviews. Please ask me questions for my bio.**

**Disclaimer: DON'T. OWN. ANYTHING. Got it memorized? :)**

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Chapter III

**Reader's POV**

It was not a well-known fact, but Opal Koboi did have a twin sister. In some ways they were exactly the same. She was just as intelligent and beautiful, with flowing blonde hair and icy blue eyes, but it some ways they were different.

Topaz Koboi was, if possible, even more devious than Opal. She realized early on that her sister was a very formidable opponent, but reckless when she started to execute a plan. Topaz reasoned that her sister would probably suffer an early death, due to her criminal excursions. So she faked her own death and went into hiding, harvesting money for her inventions under pseudonyms, gathering troops.

That was another thing that they both had in common: they were both conceited, vain, and wanted to take over the world.

Topaz thoughtfully paced the floor of her house. Her gossamer wings fluttered and twitched, sometimes levitating her a few inches off the ground. She had enough money now, that was for sure, but what she needed now was an idea.

Her brain sparked off schemes, but she waved them all away. She needed a plan, something airtight and foolproof.

Nothing came to mind… but she could wait. She had been waiting for years.

**Minerva's POV**

I was reading an encyclopedia book in my room when my iPhone rang. I hurriedly picked it up and pressed it to my ear. "Minerva Paradizo speaking." I said in business-like tones.

"Minerva?"

I felt a jolt of pleasant surprise and changed my voice from 'business' to 'friendly-bordering-on-more-than-that'. "Artemis? Is that you?"

"No," Came the bored and sarcastic reply. "It's his evil clone."

"It's so nice to talk to you again, Artemis." I smiled genuinely. "I heard about the Armageddon episode. I am _so _glad that you are okay."

"Well, I'm not completely okay. I have six toes on my left foot, my magical eye had reverted to it's normal blue, and my middle finger and index finger are still switched."

Behold: your completely normal and casual conversation with Artemis Fowl the Second.

"How can I help you, Artemis?" I asked, closing my book.

"Have you been contacted by a mysterious email recently?" He asked bluntly.

I frowned, thinking for a second, then answering. "Actually, yes, I have. How did you know?"

"Because they contacted me too. It's… complicated."

"Illuminate me."

He did, causing me to think deeply for several moments. "So, let me get this straight. You want me to go to the Lower Elements to help the People conduct a few challenges as tests for this Narcissa to see how clever she really is."

"Please do it, Minerva. Machiavelli could be a threat to the People."

I gave a theatrical and melodramatic sigh. "I'll do it. But only for you, Artemis." I added to embarrass him.

I could almost see him blush as I hung up.

Only later would I know that he had me on speakerphone.

**One day later, at a fancy restaurant in France…**

I slightly nervously touched the flesh tone mike glued to my throat. "Foaly, you there?" I whispered.

"With you all the way, sweetheart." His voice spoke through the tiny white cylinder in my ear.

I gave a small scowl. "Don't call me sweetheart."

"Okay, okay. Just trying to lighten the mood." He grumbled.

The plan was simple. Butler had called his sister, Juliet, momentarily away from Mexico and had her dress as a waiter in the restaurant (with a lot of complaints from her). She was going to provide protection for me lest Narcissa started causing trouble. She was also going to plant tiny camera on Narcissa's jacket, just to keep a tab on her. I had arrived an hour earlier than the arranged time to counter the concussive grenade that Narcissa adhered to the table when Artemis wasn't there. They were going to get pictures of this girl as a point of reference for Foaly so he could find some deep-buried files on Narcissa.

'I don't understand it,' He had growled in frustration earlier. 'This girl could not have thwarted Foaly. Not possible.'

'I did,' Pointed out Artemis, causing me to giggle. Foaly gave a dismissive wave.

'Yes, but you already knew about the People. Narcissa doesn't. Hopefully.'

I checked the underside of the table for what seemed like the umpteenth time. No grenade.

In Police Plaza, I had been issued a blue iris-cam, a memory latex mike, and a tiny earpiece.

"Just concentrate." Said Artemis in my ear. "I have a feeling that Machiavelli can read body language."

"Artemis, I know."

Artemis started to say more, but at that time the door swung open and Narcissa Machiavelli came in. I suppressed a surprised gasp. Butler had described her as a "pretty little thing", but I hadn't imagined anyone like this.

Just the way she walked made me feel incompetent. Narcissa was graceful and beautiful, and made me feel clumsy and colorless. Her eyeliner was really distracting. Every time she blinked, I felt compelled to look at her. Her gorgeous dark hair was swept over one shoulder, and it shone in the sun. Her lovely gray eyes sparkled. I self-consciously straightened up a little.

Just as she was heading towards my table, Juliet "accidentally" bumped into her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, mademoiselle!" She apologized with a perfect French accent. "I didn't see you." Juliet bent down and brushed a hand over her shoulder, effectively placing a miniscule camera on the girl.

Narcissa straightened up, graciously accepting the apology. "Oh, it is fine. I apologize for getting in your way, Miss Juliet."

She then walked on.

Before she reached the table, I murmured: "Wow. She's really beautiful, Artemis."

"Meaning?"

"Nothing. Just commenting on her appearance."

If Narcissa had been surprised that her guest had been thirty minutes early, it did not show. She gave me a perfect white smile, and sat down. She held out a hand.

"You are Minerva Paradizo, correct?"

"At your service."

"I am Narcissa Machiavelli."

Gee, thanks. I didn't know that.

"I think you have something to show me, Miss Machiavelli?"

"Yes." She replied. "Items of great value."

As Narcissa opened up her briefcase one-handedly, Foaly started speaking in my ear.

"Something's up. If I know genii, then they always have a backup plan. This girl has failed to plant her bomb, so she must have something else in store to protect her precious technology."

Narcissa started to describe the wonders of her technology, and I nodded and asked questions, but really my mind was elsewhere.

_What was Narcissa's backup plan?_

Foaly spoke as Narcissa explained her gadgets.

"She's amazing." He breathed in admiration. "I never thought I would believe it, but this girl _has _surpassed me. I must get a hold of those things."

Holly then dominated the frequency. "But they're expensive." She objected dryly. "And you know what the Council is like with their gold."

Multiple groans over the earpiece. Butler spoke up.

"Okay, Minerva. Time to play your bluff. You know the drill."

I nodded fractionally. Meanwhile, Narcissa had finished with her speech. She waited for questions or comments.

I tapped my chin, pretending to think about it. "Let's say, I don't agree with your price." I said finally.

Narcissa shrugged off-handedly. "Like it or not, it is my technology, so it is either take it or leave it."

"What if I decide to take your technology with me right now?" I asked, leaning forward slightly. Everyone over the earpiece was silent, listening and watching the crucial moment.

Machiavelli looked unperturbed and unconcerned. "Two reasons, Miss Paradizo."

"Reason number one?"

"Even if you managed to get your hands on my work, then you would still have to wrestle with an eternity code cobbled into the hardware."

"And reason number two?"

Narcissa gave me a mirthless white vampire smile that I had seen on Artemis's face so often before. "Look to your left."

I did, and I felt my heart rate speed up from 'slow-walk' to 'fifty-meter dash'.

In the table next to our's was a man. His eyes and face was mostly cast into shadow by the rather large fedora on his head, but I could tell he was watching me. He looked me straight in the eye over the table, and I saw a tiny silver gun clenched in his white-gloved hand under it.

"Do not worry." Said Machiavelli serenely. "It only shoots darts containing a sleep solution. If you were shot with it, you would awake in a few minutes. But that's quite enough time for me to get away, eh?"

I paled and then swallowed as if I was nervous. I hurriedly got up from my chair. "I'll think about your offer."

Narcissa smiled again. "Do as you please." She then reached under the table and retrieved a small silver half-sphere.

Oh, this girl was full of surprises.

"A concussive grenade." I breathed.

"Yes. A concussive grenade."

"But how? I regularly do a bomb check under the table, and before I got here there was none." I said in pretend surprise, repeating the lines that Artemis had hurriedly whispered in my ear.

"I did it while I was opening my case. The first trick a magician learns: direct your audience's attention with one hand, while doing the real trick in the other."

I shuddered involuntarily as I left the restaurant, feeling the dart gun and Narcissa's perfectly evil vampire smile trained on my retreating back.

**One hour later…**

I walked into the Operations Room. Everyone was crowded around a large monitor, watching the video feed from the iris cam.

"There is something wrong." Mused Artemis thoughtfully. "But I can not put my finger on it."

He clicked the rewind button, and it zoomed backwards to the part where Juliet had bumped into Narcissa.

**"Oh, I'm so sorry, mademoiselle!" She apologized with a perfect French accent. "I didn't see you." Juliet bent down and brushed a hand over her shoulder, effectively placing a miniscule camera on the girl.**

** Narcissa straightened up, graciously accepting the apology. "Oh, it is fine. I apologize for getting in your way, Miss Juliet."**

** She then walked on.**

Suddenly, I felt the blood flash-freeze in my veins. Artemis was right. There _was _something wrong. "Wait!" I pushed Artemis roughly away from the controls, and held the rewind button down for the briefest instant.

**"Oh, it is fine. I apologize for getting in your way, Miss Juliet."**

I hit the pause button and turned triumphantly to the gathering crowd. "There, you see?"

"What? What do I see?" Asked Trouble Kelp.

Artemis caught his breath and literally smacked his forehead with his palm. "Oh, stupid, stupid. You're right, Minerva. Miss Juliet. _Miss Juliet. _She called Juliet by name, even though her nametag read, 'Selena Belle'.

Silence from the room at large.

Foaly broke it. "Oh. _Oh. _This is bad. I'm glad that we managed to get a camera on Narcissa." He tapped the keyboard for a few long seconds. The screen came up in a semi-dark room, with coats hanging barely within the visible spectrum.

Foaly rewound the tape to the beginning.

**Narcissa entered a car with blacked out windows. **

** "A perfect execution of a perfect plan." She gloated. "Paradizo looked so scared when I pulled out the concussive grenade, poor girl."**

** "Yes, ma'am." Replied the driver as if this was normal. "Brilliant, you are."**

** "Yes," She cooed. "It ****_was _****brilliant. Pure genius, if I may add."**

Mulch was quick to groan audibly. "Do we have to listen to this smart mouth brag about how great she is? I'm gonna throw up, fall asleep, or both."

Artemis watched with his blue eyes wide and attentive. "She could be bluffing." He suggested finally. "Maybe she had figured out about the camera."

Foaly had a skeptical look and his long face. "I doubt that she could know. My bugs are proven to be undetectable."

"Not to be rude, Mr. Foaly, but I think we have already acknowledged the fact that this girl has technology beyond ours." Butler pointed out shrewdly.

Foaly was put in an outraged silence.

"Narcissa must have looked up the Butler family. That's why she recognized Juliet." I suggested.

Foaly started what looked like a complex amount of Gnomish typing. "I'm going to put some surveillance devises in her computer. We'll be able to view her computer at will, but it won't become activated until a couple of hours.

Artemis gave a slightly grim nod. "I will admit, there is only a small chance that Narcissa would have noticed the placing of the camera. I doubt that Machiavelli is _that _clever."

Mulch gave a loud groan that echoed throughout the room. "You know what, Arty? That statement is so clichéd that it makes me want to scream."

No one answered Mulch. It was true, after all.


	4. Narcissa's Two Steps Ahead

**MidnightShadow: Hey! Listen! Hey! Listen! Wassup guys? Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, and I hope that you continue to do it! I take all your advise and praise to heart, so it means a lot to me! And check out my bio. It contains a little scene that I made up for Artemis Fowl for all those Juliet Butler fans! And PLEASE ask me questions for my bio. I want a Q&A!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Artemis Fowl. Eoin Colfer does.**

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Chapter IV

**Narcissa's POV**

I chuckled to myself as the rented car drove away from the restaurant. This had been too easy. Paradizo's bluff about trying to take my technology had been exactly that. A bluff. And an obvious one at that. How could Minerva Paradizo have taken my technology at that moment? She had no visible bodyguard, and therefore no visible intimidation. Besides, even if she had a bodyguard hiding somewhere, he would have no doubt made himself acknowledged when I had threatened to shoot her with the dart gun. I had barely managed to notice the tiny cylinder in her ear, so she must have been wired. To Artemis, no doubt. I knew Juliet Butler when I saw her, as I had looked up the Butlers on the Interpol and several government sites.

So Minerva Paradizo and Artemis Fowl were working together.

She had most likely placed a surveillance tool on my shoulder, as that is the only place that she had touched me. So I acted out the confident and evil businessperson to my driver so that the reviewers of the tape would think that they succeeded. Idiots.

"A perfect execution of a perfect plan." I said, smirking. "Paradizo looked so scared when I pulled out the concussive grenade, poor girl."

My driver, Richard, raised his eyebrows at me in the rearview mirror, but followed suit.

"Yes, ma'am. Brilliant, you are."

"Yes," I purred, hoping that my opponents would think that I was vain and self-important. "It _was _brilliant. Pure, genius, if I may add."

I gloated all the way to the manor, and then got out of the car, with a face glowing with victory.

I passed the iron gates unhindered with the remote in my pocket. The burly guards all nodded at me and muttered respectful hellos, but otherwise stayed stock still at their posts or patrolled the grounds with cat-like steps. I had hired the best-trained security I could find. A pyramid of lasers laced themselves around the manor. I stepped up the porch and opened one of the double doors. When I entered, a servant came up to me hurriedly.

"Your mother, miss. She's been asking to see you."

A melting pot of emotions churned in my stomach. I frowned, thinking that I did not want some arrogant bigheaded Irish boy and his equally exasperating French girlfriend seeing this part of my life. So I pulled off my bulky tan jacket and folded it strategically so that the left shoulder was covered.

"Very well. I shall see her soon. Just let me put my jacket in my room."

I walked up the stairway up to my room in the south tower, walking as quietly as I could so that the camera could not detect where my room was.

I keyed in a quick password on the lock of my room, and then pressed my thumb to the gel print scanner. The lock flashed green, and the door yielded.

I carefully closed the door, and then placed my jacket in the dark closet until I could loop it. For now, I had to wait until my visit with Mother was finished.

Steeling my courage, I walked slowly, dragging my feet back down to my mother's room. It was a large room. I knocked as softly as I possible could.

"Mother? Are you awake?"

"Yes, who is it? I'm busy."

I opened the door with a speed that would've made a sloth look swift. My mother was lying on the bed, her dark hair spread across the pillow. Her pale skin seemed to be stretched tightly over her bones, creating visible shapes of enamel. Her frail arms were crossed over her chest, and her chocolate brown eyes were narrowed and slightly insane. Just the sight of her made my heart ache.

"Ah, Narcissa, sweetheart. How was school?"

I swallowed a lump in my throat and spoke. "Good, Mother. Straight A's in everything, as usual." I lied. I hadn't gone to school for a while. Too basic. But, besides all of my crazy antics involving Artemis Fowl and Minerva Paradizo, I felt a flicker of guilt at lying to my mother when she was so physically and emotionally weakened. But I ruthlessly squashed it. _Shut up. This is no time for ethics. _

Belle Machiavelli nodded indulgently. "I assumed so. Good girl." Then her brown eyes went out of focus. "Where is your father, Cissy? He said he would be home by now."

I could feel tears welling up inside my eyes. But I hold them back. "His trip is taking longer than expected, Mother. He should be home in a few more days, at the most."

Belle nodded, then turned sharply towards me as if just noticing that I was there. "What are you doing in here, girl?" She screeched with anger. "I would have thought, after all that bragging, that Cissy's alarms would keep out intruders, but she was obviously wrong. Get out, get out!" She then grabbed and hurled a china vase at me with surprising strength and speed. I instinctively put out my arms to protect myself. It shattered against my delicate hands, and blood pooled around my pale wrists.

The tears were falling freely now, and they splattered on the Tunisian carpet, salt water mixing with the scarlet blood.

I ran out, my hands throbbing with pain, but I did not stop until there was my lab door in front of me. I hurriedly punched in a key code, a number code, and a letter code. Then I put my bloody thumb in the gel scanner.

The reinforced steel door opened, and I stumbled in, determined to put as much space as I could between my mother and myself.

I waited until I had calmed myself down, and then scolded myself for acting so impulsively. I should have acted like the child prodigy I am, instead of a sniveling thirteen-year old.

Quickly bandaging my hands with sterile white bandages, I went to work. First, I took out a buttonhole camera from a drawer, and put in the lab's clothes closet (don't ask me why I have a clothes closet in a lab). After a minute, I took it out and attached it to my computer. I edited the small film, and then sent the file to loop.

Going back to my room, I retrieved my folded jacket and carefully placed the left shoulder on the omni-sensor cabled to my computer. It was tedious work, since I had to move my jacket in a way that the supposed camera was covered.

I logged in, and sure enough, an electronic devise showed up on the omni-sensor's monitor. I smirked, inflated ego returned and in it's place, as I placed the looped file in the camera's database. How arrogant. The placer of the camera was so ignorant that they did not even bother to put a code on it. Pitiful. Now, even though the camera could be facing anything, all that would show up was the inside of my closet.

Always let your opponents think that they were winning the battle. Un-fortunately, against two child genius's, you could never be sure if you were two steps ahead or level with them.

And if they found out, I would only lose an advantage that I did not assume I would have in the first place anyway.

Suddenly, my laptop started beeping. I went over to it and logged in. Interesting. So someone was trying to spy on me. Well, that would be their undoing. My computer's virus killers snatched the surveillance and dropped it in what I had animated to look like a steel cage. One of my rare displays of ironic humor. I placed a few unimportant files inside, and the virus attacked it, opening them up and probably sending dozens of messages to the placer. In a few minutes, I would be able to use the virus against whoever had placed it. Oh, I was having too much fun with these imbeciles.

I sat down patiently. I could wait.

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**Wow. Narcissa is really smart. Anyway, I have a little Minerva/Artemis, but it might change to Narcissa/Artemis later on. You guys give me your opinions. And if you want me to bring N1 into the story, tell me! See ya! *Disappears in a cloud of pink smoke***


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